Canadian Military History Volume 18 Issue 2 Article 5 2009 The Hendershot Brothers in the Great War Eric Brown Tim Cook Follow this and additional works at: https://scholars.wlu.ca/cmh Part of the Military History Commons Recommended Citation Eric Brown and Tim Cook "The Hendershot Brothers in the Great War." Canadian Military History 18, 2 (2009) This Canadian War Museum is brought to you for free and open access by Scholars Commons @ Laurier. It has been accepted for inclusion in Canadian Military History by an authorized editor of Scholars Commons @ Laurier. For more information, please contact [email protected]. and : The Hendershot Brothers in the Great War The Hendershot Brothers in the Great War Eric Brown and Tim Cook n the summer of 1917, two brothers initial excitement of raising the First The number of recruits dropped Ifrom Kingsville, Ontario, Warren Contingent – and then subsequent significantly in the last months of Francis Hendershot, 20 years old, and formations – was followed by the 1916.3 The casualty lists and nearly his brother Charles Cecil, 17 months dreadful casualties of the April and full employment in Canada, along younger, enlisted in the Royal Flying May 1915 battles of Second Ypres with the large contingent already Corps, Canada. They had no previous and Festubert. This would be a long overseas, meant the end of easy military experience, but felt the and costly war. A constant supply of recruiting. Conscription was coming. need to participate in the Great War. men would be needed for fighting Warren and Charles, along with tens While the vast majority of the 424,000 formations on the Western Front. of thousands of other young men, Canadians who went overseas served There was a frenzy of recruiting would become prime candidates for in the land forces, primarily the in Canada during the first two years compulsory service in the overseas Canadian Corps, the Hendershot of war. Men between the ages of 18 forces, and likely as infantry soldiers, brothers would be among the 22,000 and 45 were implored to enlist. There where casualties were highest. They who were selected for the British was mounting pressure from patriotic had to make a decision – volunteer for flying services. This is their story, politicians, newspaper editorialists, service now or wait to be conscripted. as told through their surviving and pulpit speeches urging men in Neither of the brothers was in a trade correspondence, photographs, log the urban areas to do their duty. Rural or industry considered essential to books and other official documents. Canada, which made up more than the war effort. It was most unlikely They were two young men, differing half of the nation’s population, could they would avoid conscription. in temperament, similar in character, more easily ignore such pleadings Charles changed his mind at both determined to do their duty. and go on with their back-breaking some point during the nine months One brother lived, the other died. labour on farms knowing that after his birthday. Was he swayed by Thousands of Canadians, proud agriculture was deemed an essential the constant appeals to “do his bit” or members of the British Empire, occupation. But Canadians responded the desperate tactic of embarrassing marched to war in August 1914. The and by mid-1916 the number of Résumé : Warren et Charles Hendershot enlistees was over 312,000. It was an s’enrôlèrent dans le Royal Flying Corps Abstract: Warren and Charles Hendershot impressive figure for Canada, even à l’été 1917 pour servir le Canada et enlisted in the Royal Flying Corps in the if the majority of Canadian males l’Empire à la Première Guerre mondiale. summer of 1917 to serve Canada and of military age were still not moved Voici leur histoire, constituée à partir de Empire in the First World War. This is to enlist.1 Charles, who celebrated ce qui est resté de leur correspondance, their story, as told through their surviving de photos, de carnets de bord et de his eighteenth birthday on 12 July correspondence, photographs, log documents officiels conservés au books and official documents held at the 1916, was unconvinced that he was Centre de recherche d’histoire militaire Military History Research Centre at the needed overseas. Working in Toronto du Musée canadien de la guerre. Les Canadian War Museum. The Hendershot and homesick, he was not miserable frères Henderson étaient jeunes, de brothers were young men, differing in enough to enlist; “I would rather tempérament différent, mais à la temperament, similar in character, and personnalité semblable, et tous deux commit suicide than join the army,” both determined to do their duty. One résolus à accomplir leur devoir. L’un des 2 brother lived, the other died. he wrote to his mother. frères a survécu; l’autre est décédé. Published© Canadian by Scholars Military Commons History @, Laurier,Volume 2009 18, Number 2, Spring 2009, pp.41-56. 41 1 Brown and Cook - Hendershot Brothers nt.indd 41 15/06/2009 4:26:59 PM Canadian Military History, Vol. 18 [2009], Iss. 2, Art. 5 and construction of airframes and The Hendershot children, photographed engines, and the development of in June 1917 (from left to right): Warren, Charles, Rolphe, Harold, Howard and aircraft weaponry were driven by the Kathleen. needs of a voracious war. There was no shortage of men who were anxious the isolated Dominion. Moreover, to test their mettle in the Royal Flying the military trials that had been Corps (RFC). conducted before the war were Initially, the RFC had little failures. One wonders how many difficulty in finding the right sort senior officers would have echoed of young men in Britain to train as Sam Hughes, the Minister of Militia pilots and observers. However, pilot and Defence, who declared “the attrition through deaths and injuries aeroplane is an invention of the devil, during training and combat was and will never play any part in the becoming a serious problem in late defence of a nation!”8 At the start of 1915. The rapid expansion of the air the war, the government’s attention arm only exacerbated the manpower was quite rightly focused on raising shortage. By early 1916 it was clear and then maintaining the land forces that the loss rates were not sustainable overseas. There were insufficient if the RFC was to survive as a viable financial and materiel resources, entity.11 Until 1916, the War Office’s and no strong political support for a recruiting in Canada was directed separate Canadian air corps. towards “British-born aviators… Yet hundreds, and then thousands, holding [flying] certificates,”12 but of Canadians began to find their this system was no longer adequate, way into the British flying services. despite already allowing Canadians, Those rare Canadians who had been Australians, New Zealanders, South able to afford prewar flying lessons Africans, and some Americans to were immediate candidates. Others serve.13 transferred from the land forces In late 1916, while all nations while overseas, hoping to escape the were hemorrhaging through the drudgery and death of the Western attritional land battles, a War Office Front. They often found excitement committee in London was discussing Canadian War Museum 20010241-012_51a Canadian War in the air, but flying was just as the merits of establishing the Royal deadly as the trenches. The appeal Flying Corps, Canada, to recruit and of flying cannot be underestimated, train aircrew for service in the RFC. young men in public? No doubt he felt “and no lying out in a field wounded however, as it offered the undeniable The organization would be funded, increasingly the odd-man out, as “all beyond help.”6 His mother was attraction of participating in a new organized and managed by the my chums have gone now.”4 Perhaps opposed to him enlisting but Charles and exciting venture, the relative British, but would work in conjunction the unending but increasingly shrill had made up his mind. One suspects exclusivity of being an airman, and with the Canadian government. The calls for conscription influenced his calming words to his mother with it a commission. In a war of Corps was established shortly before him. In a letter written in April 1917, that “[t]here is very little danger of a mechanization and industrial fury, Christmas 1916, and the first draft Charles revealed the sea-change in flying machine falling,” did little to where the ground soldiers often of RFC instructors, officers and men his thinking on overseas service: quell her fear.7 appeared to be simple cogs in the arrived in Canada on 19 January “You know how badly I have been machine, flying over the battlefields 1917.14 wanting to enlist. Well I am going * * * * * was perceived, in the words of The organisation and construction now. I think it far better than waiting he Canadian government showed historian Jonathan Vance, as a return of RFC training facilities and the until the Militia Act [sic, Military Tlittle interest in military aviation. “to a time when individual action establishment of the recruiting Service Act] comes in force.”5 He When the war began, Canada had could decide the course of events.”9 program proceeded quickly. did not want the label of conscripted no aircraft manufacturing industry The airmen, fighting at 90 miles Truncated army basic training and man, and believed that he might of significance, nor did it produce per hour and several thousand feet medical examinations had to be be able to escape the trenches if he aircraft engines. Flying was for the above the trenches, were portrayed successfully completed before the enlisted in the flying services.